Pokémon Darkness
Part 3: Sinnoh
Chapter 26: Too Cold
White had hoped that, upon reaching Sinnoh and getting out of the mountains, the air would be less painfully cold. This soon proved not to be the case; if anything, it was getting colder. What she really wanted to think about was how pissed she was at Cipher for everything they had just done, but that was hard to do when her butt was at risk of freezing off. She didn't even want to think about what it would've been like without Reshiram's warmth.
Unfortunately, when they finally landed in a town Cynthia indicated, she had too. She couldn't even begin to imagine how any human being could possibly live here. Looking around, she saw that Cheren and Claire were also shivering, but they, at least, had pants and a jacket. N, Wes, and Petrel didn't seem too perturbed, however, and Cynthia and Triton were entirely unfazed.
"Everyone, this is Sandgem Town," Cynthia announced. "Sinnoh's top Pokémon Professor is here. The Champion also lives nearby, so we can hopefully catch her."
"Cynthia," Cheren began as they made their way towards the largest building nearby. "What exactly is the situation here? Who's aware of Cipher? What's Cipher's position?"
"Ahh, complicated," was Cynthia's answer. "Just wait a moment."
"Well, why exactly are we here?" Cheren asked, looking a bit impatient.
"To meet with the Professor, and, hopefully, the Champion," Cynthia said quickly. "Mostly, this is just a place to start planning."
White didn't think Cheren seemed completely satisfied with this answer, and she couldn't say she was, either, but, being unfamiliar with Sinnoh, they'd have to trust Cynthia.
"Why not start at the League?" Triton asked with raised eyebrows.
"No one was there when I dropped by," Cynthia explained. "And I'm fairly certain that hasn't changed. Here, let's go in, and I'll explain in more detail."
White, eager to be out of the biting cold, was the first in the building after Cynthia. A teenage boy in a blue jacket was the only one already inside, and White wondered stupidly for a moment how a Professor could be so young.
"Ah, um… Lucas?" Cynthia said uncertainly. "Where is Professor Rowan?"
"Huh?" the boy, Lucas, mumbled, looking up from his PC. "Oh! Cynthia! Sorry, the Professor's not here. He went out to Lake Verity. He should be back soon…" he added quickly when White began glaring at him.
"How soon?" Cheren asked. "This is rather important."
"Immediately," came a voice from the door, which White saw upon spinning around to belong to an old man with a long brown coat and an attention-grabbing moustache. "Why? What's the matter? And who are all of you?"
"Professor Rowan! Hello!" Cynthia exclaimed. "Is Dawn perhaps nearby? She's not at the League."
"Yes, actually. I just met her at Lake Verity," the Professor, Rowan, replied. "She said she might come here later. Why? What's the matter?"
"In essence… Team Galactic," Cynthia said, puzzling and worrying White a bit. She'd heard of Team Galactic once or twice before, but was under the impression that they weren't a threat anymore. Unless… Cipher had absorbed them, as they had to the remnants of Plasma under Ghetsis…
"Team Galactic? Really? I thought we were long past this, Cynthia," Professor Rowan sighed, shaking his head. "In fact… weren't you one of the advocates for trusting them?"
"Yes, I was, but… well, it's more complicated now," Cynthia said. "It would be nice if Dawn were here before I explained it all. Do you know when she intends to stop by?"
"I don't, Cynthia. You know Dawn. She'll get here when she gets here," Rowan said, seeming rather put-off to White.
"Professor…" Cynthia said slowly. "I know you really don't want to hear that Team Galactic is up to no good again, but-"
"Don't want to hear?" Rowan chuckled humorlessly. "Of course I don't! Who would want to hear that? I just hope you've got some convincing evidence. Actually, I hope just the opposite of that."
"Can someone please explain what Team Galactic is?" White finally asked irritably. Cynthia opened her mouth to answer, but Petrel, surprisingly, spoke first.
"They're Sinnoh's Rocket an' Plasma, ain't they? Wanted to control some super-Legendaries to remake the world? 'Cept, I heard they 'aven't got a leader now. Theirs got dragged to hell, or somethin'."
Cynthia again made to speak, but was this time beat by Triton.
"Accurate enough," he murmured. "Their initial leader, a man named Cyrus, wanted to harness the power of Dialga and Palkia to rebuild the universe to suit his ideals. Giratina intervened, and took Cyrus to its world. He never returned. Now, leadership has fallen to a man named Saturn, who basically turned it into a charity."
"Huh…" White mutter slowly, along with Petrel and a few others.
"So everyone trusts them now, I take it?" Wes asked. "And they've become an arm of Cipher…"
"No, no one trusts charities," Triton said deadpan. Wes made to retort something, but Cynthia spoke up first.
"As for them being an arm of Cipher… Well, I only know so much. But I do know Saturn still holds authority, and I know he, at least, would not want anything to do with Cipher. My guess would be that only some leaders are part of Cipher, and they are influence Team Galactic indirectly."
"Now I'm the one in the dark," Rowan spoke up. "What is this 'Cipher'?"
"An evil team taken up to eleven," White replied quickly.
"They have activity in most regions. They control Hoenn and Orre completely, and seek conquest of the other regions," N added.
"Ah! Well then," Rowan exclaimed. "It does sound like Dawn ought to be here for this. Lucas, would you mind going to get her?"
"S-sure!" Lucas shouted, already halfway to the door. The draft that tore through the room as he exited rent White's flesh, and the horrible cold struck her again.
"Can I get some decent clothes?" she asked bitterly.
"Hmm?" Rowan murmured. "Sorry, I don't have any here. You could ask Dawn for some once she gets here. In fact…"
Trailing off, he rummaged in one of his coat pockets and picked out an Xtransceiever of sorts.
"Lucas?" he said into it. "You may have noticed that the young lady who came with Cynthia is woefully underdressed. She would like you to ask Dawn for a change of clothes."
"Wh-what?!" White shrieked. "'Woefully underdressed'?"
"That's what you are, is it not?" he asked politely. "Did anyone else come unprepared for Sinnoh weather?"
"A… thicker jacket would be nice," Cheren spoke up.
"I'd agree with that," Petrel added.
"Y-yes. Please," N said.
"…And three jackets," Rowan added after a pause. White noticed that Claire had said nothing, and just stood shaking at the back of the group.
"You need a better jacket, Claire?" she asked.
"O-oh… N-no…" she mumbled. "I'm fine…"
"You sure?" White asked, tilting her head to the side.
"Um…" was Claire's only response.
"You shaking," Triton laughed. "Get a jacket, idiot."
"F-fine, jerk," Claire sniffed.
"Erm," White spoke up. "Claire needs a jacket, too."
"Oh?" Rowan said. "And an eight-year-old sized jacket, Lucas. If you can find one."
His apparent assistant then hung up, and Rowan returned the Xtransceiever to his pocket. Sighing, he turned back to Cynthia.
"So, now that that's out of the way… introductions are long overdue. Everyone, I am Professor Rowan, one of Sinnoh's top researchers, specializing in Pokémon evolution. Who are you? And how do you know Cynthia?"
"Er, I'm White, White Shirkuro, a trainer from Unova," White said first. "Cynthia helped us fight Cipher in Unova, when they tried to invade."
"White Shirkuro?" Rowan interrupted. "I've heard that name before… Ah! You're the Hero of Truth, are you not? Master of the Yang Dragon, Reshiram?"
"Uh, that's not how I'd put it, but yeah, I guess," White responded awkwardly. "And, uh, this is N Harmonia. 'Hero of Ideals', I guess you'd say. And this is my friend Cheren, one of Unova's best trainers. This is Claire, who can see auras, and her dad, Wes. This guy's name's Petrel, don't really know much about him actually. Same deal with Triton."
"Yes, I've met Triton before," the Professor said. "But nice to meet you all, the two Unovan Heroes in particular. Can you explain more about Cipher now?"
"Perhaps we should wait until Dawn-" Cynthia began. At that moment, however, a voice rang out from the doorway. To White, it seemed very rational, if a bit cold. Like Cheren times ten.
"I'm here," the blue-haired girl said. "I met two agents of this Cipher on the way. You should be more careful."
"Wait what," White, Cheren, and Wes said simultaneously.
"At least, I'm reasonably sure that that's what they were," Dawn replied. "They were coming for you, anyway."
"Oh my, what happened, Dawn?" Cynthia asked, frowning with concern.
"Not much. I challenged them to a battle when I heard what they were planning. They left when they lost. Now, who are these people?"
Cynthia sped hastily through introductions. Like White, Cynthia had little to say about Petrel or Triton. Dawn nodded at each trainer as Cynthia gave their name and, briefly, who they were. She had a somewhat bored look in her eyes, like she'd rather be thinking about something else. White wasn't sure she liked her much.
"And everyone, this is Dawn, the Champion of Sinnoh and trainer of Uxie, Being of Knowledge," Cynthia concluded. "She was basically responsible for taking down Team Galactic. She even defeated Cyrus and Giratina in the Distortion World."
"Ah… Yes, well…" Dawn muttered, averting eyes. "Let's focus on the matter at hand. I understand Galactic is plotting crimes again? As a part of a larger organization, Cipher?"
"Can I like, have my clothes now?" White spoke up quickly.
"Oh, right!" Lucas yelled, tossing jackets to those who moved forward. "Err, sorry, little girl. Might be a bit big, but this is the smallest jacket we could find."
As Claire pulled on a pink jacket at least a size and a half too big for her, Dawn reached into her bag and withdrew another piece of the clothing she was wearing, which looked to White like a jacket that melted into a skirt.
"Nope. I don't do skirts," White said immediately. Dawn stared at her with a halfway bemused expression before also withdrawing a pair of jeans.
"I expected as much, from what I've heard of you, White Shirkuro," she almost-chuckled.
"Y-you've heard of me?" White said, taken a bit off guard.
"Well, yes. You're the Unovan Hero of Truth, a huge piece of recent history. Why wouldn't I have heard of you?"
"Well, maybe heard of me…" White mumbled. "But you know my style?"
"More your personality. Your style can be deduced from that," Dawn said, in a manner of explaining something she expected to be obvious. "Odd you didn't realize that, being the supposed embodiment of truth."
"Knowledge is not the same thing as truth, Dawn," Cynthia spoke up. "Setting you and White next to each other is a perfect example of that."
"I see…" Dawn murmured, though White rather doubted it. "Well, regardless. Here are your clothes. No need to return them."
"How generous," White said, through slightly clinched teeth. Taking the new outfit, she hurried to the bathroom. The jacket baffled her for a bit before she worked the buttons out. Stuffing her vest and shorts into her bag's horrendous "miscellaneous" pocket, she placed her hat back on and hurried back out. By then, the others were mostly through explaining the important points about Cipher and what they had already done.
"I see…" Professor Rowan said slowly. "What about your brief return to Sinnoh, Cynthia? What makes you say that Team Galactic is under Cipher's control?"
"Their Veilstone building. I actually went to see if I could mobilize Team Galactic against Cipher. They had higher security, though, which made me suspicious. I instead asked Lucario to observe the auras throughout the building, and he found that many were Shadow. Some seemed to be of the Carien line. We went by other Galactic buildings, and they were the similar, though admittedly not as bad as Veilstone. That's all I have to go on, honestly. Oh, there's that, and a high Galactic member, Eldes, is very definitely a part of Cipher."
"That is more than enough," N said, quickly and quietly. "We need to begin informing Gym Leaders, then."
"While I agree that the evidence is sufficient," Dawn began, "it will not be as simple as that. Team Galactic is well-trusted by the Gym Leaders and people of Sinnoh, and not without good reason. I, for one, never stopped being suspicious of them."
"That's neither here nor there, Dawn," Professor Rowan interrupted. "But she is correct. We will have a hard time convincing others. I trust you, Cynthia, but, to be frank, wild theorization is one of your more well-known attributes. As for Dawn, while she is for the most part well-respected by the Sinnoh and its Leaders, that she has been consistently been outspoken against Galactic will likely cause them to take her less-than-seriously."
"I'm hearing several problems and no solutions," Triton coolly remarked.
"He's actually right," Wes said, clearly reluctant to say so. "We need to focus on putting together a plan that'll work. Especially considering that more Cipher agents will be on the way."
"More problems…" Triton muttered. Claire said something to him quickly that White didn't overhear, and he just sniffed and was quiet.
"Hmm. This is true," Professor Rowan said. "Remind me: where are all of Galactic's buildings?"
"Veilstone, Eterna, Jubilife, Snowpoint, and Celestic City. In order of age," Triton rattled off.
"Hmm… Near each Lake, and on either side of Mount Coronet. Interesting," Dawn mused. Professor Rowan shook his head, but sighed.
"I doubt that was intentional at the creation of the three most recent, but, if Cipher plans something with Legendaries, then it is most opportune for them," Rowan sighed.
"Okay, I hate to say it, but again with the problems!" White yelled irritably. "Come on, let's focus on a plan."
"Why do we not just speak with the Gym Leaders as we have previously?" N asked. "They may require more convincing, but I am sure they will at least listen and give us consideration."
"Most of our words won't carry much weight with them, though," Cheren brought up, to White's annoyance. "I'm also getting the impression that this Team Galactic is most everywhere. If they're reporting to Cipher in the end, just getting around will be hard."
"Okay," White began, making irritated hand motions. "I know it's easier to keep listing our disadvantages, but it's not getting us anywhere. What are we doing?"
"Simple," Dawn finally said. "Galactic buildings are, technically, open to the public. Those the Gym Leaders do not know can investigate them. Cynthia, Professor Rowan, and I will do our best to convince the Gym Leaders."
"That sounds good," N agreed. "But I think we need to avoid arguing. Especially over such small things. Our friendship is what makes us stronger than Cipher."
"Hm. You are the Hero of Ideals, aren't you?" Dawn remarked. White, however, was struck by his words. He was right, and she'd been rather stupidly argumentative.
"You're right," she sighed, resting her head on his shoulder for a moment. "Okay, how're we gonna split up? Five buildings, right? And, what, seven of us who aren't gonna focus on Gym Leaders?"
"Their Veilstone base is particularly dangerous," Cynthia said. "Perhaps two could go to each of the other buildings? I could accompany someone after meeting with the Gym Leader there."
"Groups that small make me nervous," White winced, just as N voiced a very similar concern. They caught each other's eye and smiled momentarily, before turning back to the group.
"I agree," said Cheren. "But at the same time, we can't afford to not split up."
"That's true," White sighed. "So, how about groups of four, then? Each takes two bases, then we meet for Veilstone?"
"That sounds like the best possible plan to me," N said with a hopeful smile.
"Agreed," Wes nodded. "Now, what groups are going where? Just saying this now, but I'm not leaving Claire."
"I'll follow them, I think," Triton added, smirking slightly. White frowned, as she had planned not to group the kids together. She considered bringing this up, but quickly decided that it wouldn't be worth an argument with Triton.
"Whelp, I figure I'd better stick with N here," Petrel mumbled to the floor. He looked like he was very uncomfortable around all these people to White.
"Okay then…" White considered. "How about you and me go with them, Cheren? Then you can go with Wes and the kids, Cynthia."
"The kids?" Triton snorted. Cheren and Cynthia, however, merely nodded.
"You'd better not go to Snowpoint, if you're cold here," Cynthia chuckled. "We'll take there, and Celestic City. You can head to Jubilife City and Eterna City. They both lack official Gyms, anyway. Jubilife is just due north from here."
"Sounds like we're set then!" White exclaimed.
"Indeed," the Professor nodded. "I'll take care of cities on this side of Coronet, Dawn. Perhaps you could take the east?"
"Certainly," Dawn said, turning toward the door. "Goodbye, every-"
At that moment, however, the door flew open and someone smacked directly into her. He had oddly shaped blond hair (at least, White thought so) and an orange-and-white striped jacket.
"Barry…" Dawn grumbled. "How many times has it been, since you swore you were going to be more careful?"
"Only four!" Barry insisted. "Well, five now, but this is important! You told me to tell you when more of those guys showed up, right? Well they're almost here!"
"How many of them?" asked Dawn, unfazed.
"Erm, I think, ten-ish?"
"Hmm. We should hurry, then. You can come with me, Barry."
"Oh, all right! Cool!" Barry exclaimed, as they hurried outside.
"Can you take Triton, Cynthia?" Wes asked, sending his Gliscor out.
"I can fly myself," Triton sniffed, releasing his Staravia.
"Great then," Wes murmured. "You fly with me, Claire?"
"Um," Claire whispered, frowning. White thought she already knew what she was thinking. "C-can Gliscor support both of us?"
"Well…" Wes frowned also. "Yeah, you're probably right."
"I'll take her on Braviary, Wes. She'll be safe, I promise," Cynthia assured him.
"All right, we'd better go," Wes said hastily. "Good luck, everyone. Hope this goes all right."
By the time they all got outside, Dawn and Barry were gone. Claire hurried to give White and N a hug. She smiled at Cheren, shaking his awkwardly-extended hand, and nodded somewhat uncomfortably to Petrel. White smiled as she rustled her hair before watching her fly off with Cynthia.
"Okay, let's go," White said, leading onto the back of Archeops as she appeared. N and Cheren did the same with Altaria and Unfezant on either side of her, and Petrel hastily clung to his Crobat. She glanced back at Professor Rowan, beamed her appreciation, and took of to the north, just catching sight of the approaching Cipher agents, and praying they wouldn't give pursuit.
